Broken Oaths
by Lulu C. T
Summary: Leafpool travels to visit Mothwing on a muggy summer's night in order to find out the Riverclan medicine cat's true feelings for her One-shot.


AN: First drabble in a while...I'm so utterly rusty at this. :( Enjoy the Mothpool!

Night fell across the forest quietly, a blanket of purple-black carpeting the skies and darkening the trees. The air was thick with furling mist and very little moonlight filtered through the tree boughs and on to the forest floor.

Summer nights were often humid by the lake. Leafpool trotted silently through the undergrowth, her pelt heavy against her skin with moisture. Her nose crinkled in discomfort. She should've been curled up warm in her den with her apprentice, Jaypaw. Instead, she was out here, traipsing across miles of territory in the dead of night.

Her heart sped up at the thought of who awaited her at the end of her journey. She paused, her tail lashing in excitement. It was worth the momentary discomfort of the wet summer night to see her beloved. She knew she was breaking Starclan's laws yet again, but still…what harm could their relationship truly bring? There would be no kits- she felt a stab of guilt at this thought- and she only traveled at night when her clan was asleep- and only then if she knew all were healthy and well.

Leafpool shook herself from her deep thoughts as she neared the Windclan scent line. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled uncomfortably as she sniffed the markers. They were a few hours old, a patrol was bound to be by soon. She hunkered down in a nearby bush, the half-dead branches poking painfully into her side.

Here, she strained her ears to listen for the sound of approaching footsteps. It was only a few moments later when three cats appeared along the border. She stifled a groan as they crept closer. Leading the patrol was none other than Crowfeather. She felt her heart wrench in her chest. Though it was long ago, she still felt guilty at the stunt she had pulled. And the results of that one night. She dug her claws into the soft dirt. She would not make the same mistake again. She had indeed loved Crowfeather at some point, but that time was over. She knew what kind of cat he truly was.

She waited patiently as the patrol passed by. The two cats accompanying Crowfeather carried on without pause but Leafpool stiffened as Crowfeather raised his muzzle one last time to scent the air. She was afraid she would be found out. She shrunk further back into the bracken as his icy eyes swept the border once more before he too disappeared over the hills. Finally, she let herself relax. She waited a moment more to be safe before she wriggled out from beneath the bush to begin her journey once more.

The rest of the trek through Windclan territory was uneventful. Besides a minor scare when a moor rabbit suddenly crossed her path, the trip was simple enough. The moon had almost reached it's peak in the sky by the time Leafpool had crossed over into Riverclan territory.

Her paws squelched beneath her in the peaty soil. "_More water. Just what I wanted," _She thought to herself as she hurried along. There wasn't much time. She would be lucky to see the cat she loved for an hour or so tonight. Her travels had taken her longer than she expected.

She almost missed the old forest, despite the many harrowing memories it brought up. At least then Riverclan's border was close to Thunderclan. Though, as she had heard from her parents, that border had caused much strife in their time.

At last her journey's end was in sight. She scented the air, her tail curling with pleasure as she took in the familiar scent of the cat she was looking for. Wiggling her haunches, she fell into a playful crouch. Slowly she crept through the tall grass, her target in sight. With a purr she launched herself at a cat who sat waiting, ears erect beneath the shadow of an oak.

The other cat stifled a mreow of shock. It tumbled over on to it's back, Leafpool's weight pressed against it's belly. The moment it recognized her scent, the cat beneath Leafpool relaxed.

"Mothwing," Leafpool purred, rubbing her muzzle along the Riverclan medicine cat's jaw, "I've missed you."

Mothwing batted at Leafpool's nose with a sheathed paw, eyes narrowed, "You nearly gave me a heart attack. You can't just creep up on a cat in the dead of night!"

Leafpool flicked her ear, slightly embarrassed, "I was having some fun…"

With an amused purr, Mothwing bumped her snout against Leafpool's, "You know I'm not angry. It was a good surprise…after I realized it was you."

Leafpool sprang off the she cat beneath her and stretched out nimbly, her forepaws working the grass contently. The long walk had drained her but now that she was with Mothwing, she felt energized once again. She knew in the morning she'd be feeling sluggish but tonight would be worth the sleepless night.

"Next time, you're coming to Thunderclan," Leafpool meowed as her whiskers twitched, "I spotted Crowfeather on the way here. He almost scented me."

Mothwing frowned, "To be honest, I'm surprised no cat has mentioned the scent of Thunderclan and Riverclan crossing their borders…"

"Maybe they recognize our scents? We're medicine cats, we're allowed to travel through the clans," Leafpool said, though she knew the feeling of worry Mothwing was surely sharing. Even though the two of them were medicine cats, the frequency of their visits had grown. It might look suspicious to some cats that two of them spent so much time together.

"Windclan is going to think we're forming an alliance against them. You know Onestar has it in for Firestar," Mothwing said, a certain bitterness to her voice, "It's a shame that they couldn't still be friends. It might make our friendship a little easier."

Leafpool flinched slightly. She hated when Mothwing called what they had a friendship- surely she thought of them as more than that? She twined her tail with Mothwing's, "Don't you think it's time we addressed our relationship for what it is?"

The golden she cat locked eyes with Leafpool and asked, "And what is it?"

Leafpool let Mothwing's tail drop, the purr that had been building in her throat dying. She meowed carefully, "Do you love me?"

"Of course I do!" Mothwing responded quickly. She gave a few rapid licks to Leafpool's ears as if to reassure her of this fact.

Leafpool shook her away, her ears burning with pleasure, "Mothwing…Do you love me as I loved Crowfeather?"

Mothwing fell silent. The quiet slosh of the lake marked the passage of time as the she cats thought in silence.

"Medicine cats aren't supposed to fall in love," Mothwing said at last, her ears drooping.

"You're avoiding the question," Leafpool said softly, brushing her tail along Mothwing's chin, "I need to know what you think this is, Mothwing."

"You're asking a difficult question," Mothwing meowed in response, "I mean, you're a she cat and so am I…"

Leafpool's head tilted to the side, "Does that really matter though?"

Another moment of silence and then, "I suppose not."

"It's not like Starclan mandates that cats must be a tom and queen to be mates," Leafpool continued, "And just because we've never seen another pair like us doesn't mean they don't exist."

Mothwing shrugged and said, "Not that I care much for the opinions of old, dead cats…"

"Well, then?"

"Then, yes, I suppose we are mates."

With a happy chirp, Leafpool pounced on Mothwing, "You've finally said it!"

Mothwing snuggled beneath Leafpool and nuzzled up against her chest as she said, "I wouldn't want any other cat to be mine."

Leafpool glowed with joy. Though she had felt a similar feeling with Crowfeather, she had never felt quite so complete as she did with Mothwing. She had wanted a mate and kits, yes, but somehow both of those things still left her unfulfilled. That wasn't to say she didn't love her kits- though they knew not of her existence as their mother. It was just that Mothwing was her other half- a medicine cat like her. The two could relate in a way that Crowfeather and she never would have. The difficult part was convincing herself that Starclan wouldn't frown upon their union.

Still, she would not be bogged down with pregnancy or taking care of kits. The experiences of two medicine cats were surely better than one? Leafpool knew she was grasping at straws, but being with Mothwing was intoxicating.

"You had better go," Mothwing murmured into Leafpool's fur, "It's going to be dawn soon."

Leafpool pool glanced toward the sky and bit back a sigh of disappointment. The moon was beginning to disappear in the horizon. Mothwing nudged her to her feet, "I'll walk you to the border."

Leafpool nodded and pressed herself against Mothwing's side as the pair made their way through the wetlands of Riverclan territory. Leafpool's tail drooped as they neared the scent lines. The night was always too short.

"I'll see you in five nights," Mothwing said softly, "Don't look so sad. Besides, we travel to the moonpool soon."

Leafpool's whiskers twitched as she laughed, "I'm the only reason you get excited for those trips anymore. I wonder what Willowshine thinks of your sudden interest in Starclan?"

Mothwing butted her with her head, "Shh…She's happy to see me happy, she doesn't question it. You had better get going if you want to make it back before your clan wakes."

Leafpool nodded, giving her one last lick on the cheek before trotting across the scent line, "Good night…"

"May Starclan light your path home," Mothwing called softly to her mate as she vanished beneath the sprawling hills of Windclan moors.

With a flash of golden fur, the Riverclan she cat turned heel and headed home.


End file.
